Refrigerator case



Aug. 3, 1937. G. J. HOPKINS REFRIGERATOR CASE 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed June l5, 1936 IIIIIIIII.' .Y

Augf 3, 1937. G. J. HOPKINS 2,089,027

REFRIGERATOR CASE Filed June 15, 193s 2 sheets-sheet 2 j 5425 3832 2.9 61./ l sa i6 i9 o INVENTOR WITNESSES.-

Gozye IZB/'D52 ns.

A TTOR-NE YS.

Patented Aug. 3, 1937 UNETED STATES PATET orifice REFRIGERATOR CASE- Application June 15, 1936, Serial No. 85,277

Claims.

The present invention relates to refrigerator cases and more particularly to display refrigerators having spaced multiple panes of glass for permitting the observation of food products with- 5 in the refrigerator by prospective customers and purchasers thereof. The present invention is a modified construction of the refrigerator case shown and described in my co-pending application, Serial No. 45,403, led October 17, 1935.

The primary objects of the instant invention are to provide a display refrigerator case of the character above indicated whose spaced multiple panes of glass are maintained free from moisture condensation; to provide such a refrigerator whose cooling system maintains the spaced panes of glass free from moisture condensation; to provide such a refrigerator whose inter-glass spaces are in communication with each other; and, to provide such a refrigerator having a passage between one of the inter-glass spaces and the interior of the refrigerator within which passage wicking is disposed permitting capillary seepage of water of condensation therethrough from the inter-glass spaces into the interior of the refrigerator.

An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective View of a refrigerator case of the display type in which the instant invention is employed;

Figure 2 is a sectional View thereof on linel 2 2 of Figure l;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of the display refrigerator;

Figure 4 is a sectional view thereof on line 4 4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of one of the apertured or divided channel'bars which maintain the multiple panes of glass in parallelly disposed relation;

Figure 6 is a sectional View on line 6-6 of Figure 3;

Figure '7 is a sectional view on line of Figure 3; and

Figure 8 is a modified construction showing `the invention employed in conjunction with a swinging door of a refrigerator case.

Referring then to these drawings in which like parts of the structure there shown are designated by the same numerals in the several views, the refrigerator case IIl is of the conventional display type, here shown as provided with conventional cooling coils II, trough l2 therebeneath for catching drops of water of condensation therefrom and a conduit i3 permitting water accumulation (Cl. (i2-89.5)

within the trough |2 to run therethrough and exteriorly of the case. Conventional sliding doors I4, I5, I6 and giving access to the interior of the display refrigerator case shown in Figure 1 are likewise provided. 5

This refrigerator case is here shown as provided with triple parallelly spaced panes of glass I8, I9, 20 within the window frame 2| and forming insulating air spaces 22 and 23 between the spaced panes 8, I9 and I9, 20 respectively, per- 10 mitting prospective customers and purchasers to View the food displayed therein upon the racks 24.

A sealing element 25 of rubber or other suitable material is secured to the marginal opposite ends and sides of the frame 2| in any suitable manner 15 as by screws 26 passing through the stop 2'I and into the frame 2| and wicking 28 of felt or other fibrous material is likewise secured to the marginal opposite ends and sides of the frame and adjacent the sealing element 25 inwardly thereof 20 in any suitable manner as by screws 29 passing through the stop 30 and into the frame 2|, all as best shown in Figure 3.

The forward glass pane I8 is set within the frame 2| between the outer surfaces of the seal- 25 ing element 25 and against its ilanged portion 3|, and a plurality of spaced spacer blocks 32 secured within the frame 2| against the sealing element 25 and the wicking 28, abut the rearward surface of the forward glass pane I8. 30

Mounted upon the spaced spacer blocks 32 adjacent their outer sides are a linear series of metal channel bars 34, here shown as having angular gaps, 35 therebetween (see Figure 5), the forwardly ilanged portion of these channel bars 35 abutting the rear surface of the forward glass pane I8. The middle glass pane I9 is set within the frame between the surfaces of the outer spacer blocks 32 and against the rearwardly anged portion of the channel bars 34. likewise 40 mounted upon the spacer blocks 32 adjacent their outer sides' are a linear series of metal channel bars 36, likewise here shown as having angular gaps 37 therebetween them, these channel bars 36 being disposed in parallel spaced relationship 45 with the channel bars 34, their forwardly flanged portions abutting the rear surface of the middle glass pane I9.

The rearward glass pane 20 is likewise set within the frame between the outer surfaces of the 50 spacer blocks and in abutting relation to the rearwardly flanged portions of the channel bars 36. A sealing element 38, of rubber or the like, is interposed between the stop 3l! and the rear surface of the rearward glass pane 2|), all as best 55 shown in Figure 3. The glass mountings at the top of the frame are similar to those at the bottom shown in Fig. 3, a similar wick-filled passage being provided at the top.

In the modified construction shown in Figure 8, a door sash 39 having a resilient stop 40 is provided with a swinging refrigerator door 4I having a resilient frame abutting portion 42. The spaced panes of glass I8, I9, forming inter-glass spaces 22, 23 between the panes I8, I9 and I9, 23 are similarly set into the frame 2| relative to the channel bars 34, 36 and spaced spacer blocks 32 which spacer blocks are secured' within the sash 39 upon the sealing element 25 and the wicking 28.

Operation In operation as will beunderstood to those familiar with the refrigeration art, the coldest place in the refrigerator is the refrigerating means, which in this instance are the coils II. Air within the inter-glass space 22, between the spaced panes of glass I8 and I9 is, because it is nearer the exterior of the refrigerator case, warmer than the air in inter-glass space 23 between the glass panes I9 and 20. The air in the inter-glass space 23 is however warmer than the air in the interior of the refrigerator which air is caused to be cooled by convection currents from the refrigerating coils I I when the refrigerator is operating.

Thus when the refrigerator is in operation, the warmer air in the inter-glass space 22 rises, passing through the gaps 35, 31 in the channel bars 34, 36 thence downwardly within the inter-glass space 23, through the gaps 35, 31 in the channel bars 34, 38 and back into the inter-glass space 22, all `as indicated by arrows in Figures 3 and 8.

During this circulation between the inter-glass space 22 and the inter-glass space 23 around the middle glass pane I9 as a baflie, moisture which the warmer air in the inter-glass space 22 has been able to retain is deposited on the wicking 28 adjacent the edges of the inter-glass space 23 which is cooler. As the circulating air thus becomes chilled by the metal channel bars, the moisture of condensation thus deposited on the wicking 28 seeps by capillarity through the interstices of the wicking 28 into the interior of the refrigerator. In other words, fibres of the wicking 28 exposed on the one edge to the colder atmosphere of the interior of the refrigerator case are cooler than the atmosphere within the inter-glass space 23 and since these fibres are soon maintained below the dew point of the air entrapped within the inter-glass spaces 22 and 23, moisture within the inter-glass spaces is depositedupon the fibres of the wicking during circulation of the air within the inter-glass spaces, thus ridding the glass panes of moisture of condensation.

It will thus be seen that the multiple glass panes of the refrigerator case herein shown and described are maintained free from moisture of condensation and that the entrapped air within the inter-glass spaces pres rVes insulation.

While but one specific e bodiment of this invention has been herein shown and described, it will be understood that certain details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of this invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1.1In a display refrigerator case having triple spaced panes of glass defining a pair of interglass spaces, mountings for said panes of glass having openings therethrough permitting circulation of air between the inter-glass spaces, a passage between one of the inter-glass spaces and the interior of the refrigerator, and wicking disposed within said passage permitting capillary seepage of moisture of condensation therethrough from the inter-glass spaces into the interior of the refrigerator.

. 2. In a display refrigerator case having triple .spaced panes of glass defining a pair of interglass spaces, mountings for said panes of glass having openings therethrough permitting circulation of air between the upper and lower sides of the inter-glass spaces, a passage between one of the inter-glass spaces and the interior of the refrigerator, land, wicking disposed within said passage permitting capillary seepage of moisture of condensation therethrough from the interglass spaces into the interior of the refrigerator.

3. In a display refrigerator case having a window frame, triple spaced panes of glass disposed within said frame defining a pair of inter-glass spaces, air ducts within said frame permitting circulation of air between the inter-glass spaces, a passage between one of the inter-glass spaces and the interior of the refrigerator, and wicking disposed within said passage permitting capillary seepage of moisture of condensation therethrough from the inter-glass spaces into the interior of the refrigerator.

4. In a display refrigerator case having a window frame, triple spaced panes of glass disposed within said frame defining a pair of inter-glass spaces, air ducts within said frame permitting circulation of air between the upper and lower sides of the inter-glass spaces, a passage between one of the inter-glass spaces and the interior of the refrigerator, and wicking disposed within said passagepermitting capillary seepage of moisture of condensation therethrough from the inter-glass spaces into theinterior of the refrigerator.

5. In a display refrigerator case having a window frame, a pair of spaced apertured and parallelly disposed channel bars secured to the upper and lower sides 'of said frame, triple spaced panes of glass respectively disposed in parallelism between and adjacent opposite sides of said channel bars forming a pair of inter-glass spaces in air circulating communication at their upper and lower sides, a passage between one of the inter-glass spaces and the interior of the refrigerator, and wicking disposed within said passage permitting capillary seepage of moisture of condensation therethrough from the inter-glass spaces into the interior of the refrigerator.

GEORGE J. HOPKINS.

Cil 

